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Good morning Vietnam!

The US has formally condemned the Vietnamese government for passing a 13 year sentence against a Vietnamese doctor. The doctor was accused of spreading a translated article on Democracy from the US Embassy's website. This warranted a charge of espionage under Vietnamese law in the face of their own declarations to the UN regarding human rights, free expression and the restriction of the internet. The Vietnamese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Phan Thy Thanh had this to say in response:

I totally disagree with the critics who say Vietnam restricts the Internet. The Vietnamese government has been very supportive of the dissemination of the Internet," she said at a regular press briefing on Thursday.

Except when said internet results in the spread of ideas not sanctioned by the State.

I have to admit that I never really understand these vocal condemnations from various countries in global politics. It's not as though Vietnam would turn around in their decision simply because the US State Department disagrees with curbing the dissemination of US beliefs any more than we were likely to not attack Iraq because the French wanted to secure their oil contracts (look at that inbox flood...).

Regardless, the growing number of these stories is beginning to become disconcerting. The power of the internet is that it allows for the immediate sharing of ideas and information and restrictions upon that can only serve to stifle the development of humanity as a whole. What's more, the very nature of the internet makes it nearly impossible to completely silence specific ideas short of eliminating its functionality entirely.